Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan has proposed a new method to appoint professors, where he stressed on hiring more skilled ones from the pool of eligible candidates by conducting a common entrance test. Addressing the University of Mumbai’s (MU) annual convocation on Tuesday, Radhakrishna said it was okay to have the shortage of staff at the universities for another year as long as only meritorious professors are hired in the next cycle in a transparent process.
Agreeing that there was a “shortage of teachers at several universities,” the Maharashtra governor advocated the “use of technology to counter the problem” and suggested holding an examination to filter out “talented” educators.
“All the eligible candidates should write a common entrance test so that everyone who is qualified gets equal opportunity. After that, the process of interview and finalisation of only meritorious candidates can follow,” the Radhakrishnan said, suggesting a public service commission like the Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC). This process, he added, will enhance the education system in the country for the next three decades. “For the next 30 years, the education will be taken care of by the talented professors who have been selected on merit,” he said.
However, while suggesting an MPSC like body, Radhakrishnan agreed that there were “certain difficulties”, which the governor’s office is working on to counter. “The University Grants Commission (UGC) has also come up with an idea which I’ll go through and we will work it out,” he added.
The UGC on Monday issued a draft regulation which gives the governors of the states (who serve as the vice-chancellor of state universities) broader powers in appointing Vice-Chancellors of those universities.
In another major announcement, Radhakrishnan said that going forward, the universities will be mandated to publish an academic calendar before the session begins and hand them over to the students. “Everything should be published beforehand so that the students know what will happen in the academic cycle and plan their academic session accordingly. The university must ensure that everything that’s there in the calendar is adhered to,” the Maharashtra governor said.
More girls than boys graduate this year
Newly graduates:
Total: 1,64,456
Girls: 85,511
Boys: 78,954
UG: 1,39,184
Girls: 70,523
Boys: 68652
PG: 25,281
Girls: 14,979
Boys: 10,302
Discipline-wise:
Commerce and Management: 86,601
Science and Technology: 47,014
Humanities: 22,583
Interdisciplinary Studies: 8,267
Ph.D. graduates: 401; 230 from Science and Technology, 80 from Commerce and Management, 51 from Humanities, and 40 from Interdisciplinary Studies
15 girls and 3 boys awarded 20 medals for academic excellence
